An unlocked cell phone is one that you fully own and can be used
with another carrier. A locked cell phone—typically one bought in
conjunction with a long-term contract—is still under the control
of the carrier that sold it to you.

People unlock phones for many reasons. A common one is wanting to
temporarily switch to an overseas carrier when traveling
internationally. If your carrier doesn't agree to unlock your
phone, you can't do that.

The rule went into effect on January 26, the doing of the
Librarian of Congress last October. (The Library of
Congress oversees copyright rules, and for obscure
technical and legal reasons, the locking of cell phones falls
under copyright law.)

Last week, after the petition reached the required 100,000
signatures, the
White House responded, agreeing that Congress should fix the
law. It said the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
might also get involved.

Since then, Congress has come up with a number of proposals.

Unfortunately, the bill that's looking likely to pass right now
is awful,
advocates say. Introduced in the Senate last night, it's
called the "Unlocking Consumer Choice and Wireless Consumer Act"
( PDF link).

It doesn't solve the problem. More than that, the bill actually
says that it's designed to be useless. It tells the Librarian of
Congress that for the next three years, unlocking a paid-for
phone will be okay in some circumstances. The old rule about
unlocking from 2010 will be put back in place.

But, in 2015, the Librarian is free to change the rule back
again.

What advocates really want is a law that is that makes unlocking
a paid-for cell phone or tablet permanently legal. The White
House agrees with this position.

As of today, it's not looking good that Congress will actually
get that job done.